Hole punching device



Jan. 23, 1962 N. G. E. STEMME 3,018,037

HOLE PUNCHING DEVICE Filed June 9, 1959 4 sheets-sheet 1 28 39 37 Z L I 38 as r* I f S 25 5 I l: :lign-115|. I ,/12

i I I ,/6 l0 i I; 20g 20 18 l '--11 1L i if@ \|1HHHn-|\ E 3--f IIFF,"l "1 5 E MEME Jan. 23, 1962 N. G. E. STI-:MME 3,018,037'

HOLE PUNCHING DEVICE Filed June 9, 1959 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVE/VTGR //i/S Q. E. Sfemm Jan- 23, 1952 N. G. E. STI-:MME 3,018,037

HOLE PUNCHING DEVICE Filed June 9, 1959 4 Sheets-Sheet -3 I/vvf/(TOR N ls G. ESfemme Af-rjs.

Jan. 23, 1962 N. G. E. STEMME 3,018,037

HOLE PUNCHING DEVICE Filed June 9, 1959 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Unite tarea This invention relates to a hole punching device, particularly useful in data processing machines and the like, for selective hole punching in a preferably band-like recording medium. The device comprises a plurality of selectively actuated reciprocating hole punches cooperating with control means adapted to be moved from an inoperative position into an operative position in which they actuate said hole punches.

The hole punching device according to the invention is substantially characterized in that the control means are pivoted, or in some other manner movably supported on a common reciprocating slide in such a way that during the displacement of slide in the one direction the control means are positively displaced from inoperative into operative position. The slide displacement may, for example, be initiated when the control means strikes a stop or the like. Preferably, magnetic holding means are arranged to selectively retain said control means (after their transfer from inoperative into operative position) selectively in the operative position in spite of return means permanently tending to return all control means into inoperative position. The return means are arranged to return all control means not retained by said holding means into their inoperative positions during the displacement of the slide in the opposite direction. During this return movement of the slide the control means moved into and retained in their operative positions actuate the hole punches and thus cause them to carry out a punching stroke.

Further characteristic features of the invention appear from the following specification, in which reference is made to the accompanying drawings illustrating one embodiment of the invention, by way of an example, only such details being illustrated as are absolutely necessary for a clear understanding of the invention.

FIG. l is a side view of a hole punching device according to the invention, the view being partly in vertical section.

FIG. 2 is a vertical section taken on the line II-Il in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a view partially in section taken on the line iiilil in Fl-G.

FiG. 4 is a plan View of a detail.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the detail according to FIG. 4.

The hole punching device as illustrated in the drawings is intended for simultaneous hole punching in a plurality of index positions lying in a line extending across a tape to be fed intermittently in its longitudinal direction. The selected embodiment is assumed to comprise six index positions -ve of which represent code positions in which selective hole punching is carried out to form a coded character. The sixth index position preferably, disposed close to the centre line of the tape, is punched in each character line and may be used for feeding the tape through an analyzing or scanning means.

The hole punching device according to the invention arent O1 comprises substantially a lower base plate 1, two upper base plates 2, 3 with a punch die 4 inbetween, and two vertical side walls 5, 6. Side walls 5 and 6 support a main shaft 7 in ball bearings 8 and 9 respectively coaxial with said shaft 7. Two elongated arms 10 and 11 are secured to said side walls 5 and 6 respectively and carry xed control means generally designated 12. The control means 12 comprises a central, vertical guide 14 (FIGS. 2 and 3) fastened to the arms 10, 11 and connected to two pairs of flanged supporting plates 15, 16 each disposed on its side of said guide 14 as will be described more explicitly below.

The respective pairs of Supporting plates 15, 16 are Connected to each other by end plates 17 and 18 respectively, the end plates being of magnetic material. In the respective end plates 17 and 18 three pairs of magnet cores 19 and two pairs of magnet cores 20 respectively are secured in appropriate manner. ln view of the fact that the number of magnetic circuits corresponds to the number of index positions to be punched selectively, magnetic coils 21 and 22 respectively are attached each to its magnetic core 19, 20 in said ve pairs of cores.

Two crossbars 25 and 26 each fastened on its side of the guide 14 are provided with screwed-on top plates 27 and 28 respectively, these plates being substantially U-shaped in cross-section. Crossbar 2S has two adjustable stop screws 29 provided with lock-nuts threaded therein to lie in the same vertical planes as their respective pairs of cores 20 and, in a similar manner, crossbar 26 has three adjustable stop screws 3% provided with lock-nuts threaded therein to lie in the: same vertical plane as each of their respective pairs of cores 19. To Said guide 14 is further secured a bridge 31.`

The hole punching device according to the invention further comprises a plurality of movable members driven by the main shaft 7. Two crank arms 33, 34 are eccentrically mounted by ball bearings 35, 36 being coaxial to each other but eccentric to said shaft and to the ball bearings 8, 9. The upper ends of said crank arms are interconnected by means of a shaft 24 pivoted in ball bearings 37 and 38 xed respectively on the crank arms 33, 34. A slide 39 (FIG. 2) fastened to shaft 24 is arranged to move up and down in recesses or grooves 41 (FIG. 3) provided for the slide in the vertical side walls of guide 14.

A groove 42 (most clearly shown in FIGS. 4 and 5) and two screw holes 43 are provided in slide 39 for its fastening on the shaft 24 by means of screws 44. Slide 39 is provided for selective hole punching in tive index positions in a tape 40 to be perforated and for continuously repeated hole punching in a sixth index position in said tape, all positions being arranged on a straight line which is preferably perpendicular to the longitudinal direction in ywhich the tape is fed through the hole punching device. For this purpose, slide 39 is provided with a fixed actuating member 46 corresponding to the sixth index position, and further with three openings 47 for three movable actuating members 48a., 48h and with two openings 49 for two movable actuating members 50a, 50h. Actuating members 48 as disposed in the same vertical plane as the respective stop screws 30 and actuating members 50 are disposed in the same 'vertical plane as the respective stop screws 29.

Each actuating member 48, 50 comprises a pivoted two-armed bell crank the one arm 48a, 50a of which is arranged to strike a stop screw 30 and 29 respectively and the other arm 48h, tlb of which forms an armature located directly in line with and cooperating with a pair of magnet cores 19 and 20 respectively. In order to form a magnetic circuit, at least the armature lever portions 4Sb, Stlb are made of magnetic material. All actuating members 48, 50 are pivoted on a common axis 52 rigidly secured in a bore 53 in the slide 39. The actuating members 48 cooperating with the magnet cores 19 are biased in a direction away from said cores (i.e. in a counter-clockwise direction in FIG. 2), by means of a spring 54 comprising three leaves each acting upon one actuating member, and the actuating members 50 cooperating with the magnet cores 20 are in a similar manner biased in a direction away from said cores 20 (i.e. in clockwise direction in FIG. 2), by means of a spring 55 comprising two leaves each acting upon one actuating member.

Both springs 54, 55 are by means of screws 56 (FIG. 3) fastened in screw holes 57 (FIG. 4) in the slide 39. A hole punch 59 cooperates with the fixed actuating member 46, and a hole punch 60 cooperates with each of the pivoted actuating members 48, 50, both hole punches S9, 66 being introduced through a hole 61 (FIG. 4) in the slide 39 and thereafter displaced laterally (while being maintained parallel to their original longitudinal direction) in a groove 62 in the slide 39 until each hole punch is in line with its actuating member 46, 48 and 50 and with a dual locating means in guide 14 and its respective hole 63 in the punch die v4. The hole punches 60 cooperating with the movable actuating members are further controlled by spring wires 64 introduced without clearance in holes in the respective punches and fastened on the bridge 31.

The hole punching device according to the invention operates as follows:

When, during the rotation of the main shaft '7 the cranks 33, 34 and consequently the slide 39 with the actuating members 46, 48, t) supported thereon are moving upwards, the arms 43a, 50a of the actuating members 48, 50 strike the stop screws St) and 29 respectively so that the actuating lmembers 48 and 5G are turned in clockwise and counter-clockwise direction respectively against the action of the springs 54 and 55 respectively. Hereby the armature arms v48b, Sb are brought in contact with the respective magnet cores 19, 20, the armature levers in question being located substantially immediately above and in line with a corresponding hole punch 60. The tixed actuating member 46 is always in line with its hole punch 59. At this moment, i.e. when the slide is approximately in its upper end position, a combination of magnets 17-22 corresponding to the coded information (for instance a digit or a character) is selectively energized so that the actuating members 48, 50 corresponding to said combination of magnets are retained in operative position in contact with the respective magnet cores 19 and Ztl-respectively for actuating the hole punches against the action of the springs 54, 5S. This is due to the fact that the magnets in the embodiment shown are not suiiiciently strong to attract their armature arms 48h, 50b against the action of the respective springs 54 and 55 respectively but are strong enough to retain the armature in attracted position against the action of the spring. The actuating members 48, 50 corresponding to the unenergized magnets are however returned to inoperative position by the action of the springs 54 and 55 respectively when, during continued rotation of the main shaft 7 the slide 39 commences its downward motion, so that the arms 48a, 50a of last mentioned actuating members move out of contact with their stop screws 30 and 29 respectively.

When, during the continued downward motion of the slide 39 a punching stroke is carried out, the tape is thus perforated by the permanently operative punch 59 and in addition only by those punches 6? the actuating members 48, 50 of which are retained by the energized electromagnets. The other punches 6i) are prevented by the spring wires 64 from participating in the downward motion of the slide 39 and move upwards in relation to the respective actuating members 48, 50 the -motion paths of which are lateral of the inoperative hole punches 60. When after a completed downward stroke of the slide 39 and of the operative punches 59, 6G a coded line of index positions has been punched, the current supply to the electromagnets is interrupted and the slide 39 moves upwards again upon continued rotation of the shaft 7 whereafter the aforcdescribed cycle is repeated. Owing to the fact that the actuating members 48, 50 according to the invention are moved in a purely mechanical manner (positively) instead of in for instance an electromechanical manner, the punching can be carried out at a speed seven to eight times as high as previously, or in other words, at a rate of about lines per second instead of about 20.

As it is important, of course, that the magnets are energized during the proper portion or phase of each punching cycle, i.e. largely during the downward motion of the slide, the punching device according to the invention is preferably equipped with a synchronizing mechanism which in the embodiment described comprises a pointer 66 fastened on the main shaft 7 and consisting at least partially of magnetic material and adapted to move through an air gap 67 in a magnetic circuit. Owing to the flux change caused by the passage of said pointer 66 through the air gap 67 a synchronizing impulse is generated in a winding embracing a portion of the magnetic circuit, which pulse may suitably after amplilication be utilized for initiating the current supply to the magnets.

The embodiment described and shown must of course be considered to represent only an example the details of which may be modified in various vways within the scope of the following claims. The electromagnets 17-22, for example, which in view of the restricted space available are arranged in zigzag on both sides of guide 14 may possibly be arranged on the same side of the guide and, as an alternative, also be replaced by other retaining means. As a further modification, the number of index positions in a line may be other than live, and the number of continuously repeated punch holes may be other than one.

What I claim is:

1. In a record perforating apparatus, a frame including a punch gui-ding portion, means for feeding a record past said punch guiding portion, a die part located opposite to the punch guiding portion on the other side of the record, Va slide member slidably supported in said frame, means for imparting a reciprocating motion to said slide member in a plane substantially perpendicular to the record path, a plurality of punches slidably supported in said punch guiding portion, resilient means for holding said punches off the record in a position which is iixed in relation to the frame, a plurality of actuating members one individual to each punch, each said actuating member being mounted in said slide member for movement into and out of position to actuate its corresponding punch, -means on said frame for positively moving all said actuating members into punch actuating position at a point in each reciprocation, a selectively energizable electromagnet for each said actuating member, each said electromagnet being mounted adjacent its corresponding actuating member, and resilient means for urging each said actuating member out of punch actuating position at all other points in each reciprocation of said slide when the respective electromagnet is not energized, whereby said actuating member acts as an armature for the electromagnet and is retained in punch actuating position by said electromagnet during an additional por- 6 tion of the reciprocation of said slide suiiicient to perforate ing bell crank as said slide approaches the reversing point the record. after the punching stroke to thereby move the said one 2. A record perforating apparatus as claimed in claim 1 arm toward the corresponding electromagnet. wherein said actuating members are two-armed bell cranks pivotally mounted on said slide, one arm of said 5 References Cited in the me 0f this Patcnt bell crank being the armature of the corresponding electromagnet and wherein said frame mounted moving means UNITED STATES PATENTS comprises a stop on said frame for each actuating mem- 2,761,508 Goff Sept. 4, i956 ber, said stop engaging the other arm of said correspond- 2,857,968 Cousino Oct. 28, 1958 

